Week 11 Whiparound: Top Performances, Best Games and Fun Stuff

Week 11 of the 2024 New Mexico High School football season is complete. Here is our 11th edition of the Weekly Whiparound, our deep dive into everything that happened on the field:   Teams of the Week: Centennial (6A); Los Alamos (5A); Valencia (4A); St. Michael's (3A); Santa Rosa (2A).   Centennial (10-0) closed out a perfect regular season by capturing the District 6A-3 championship with a 42-24 victory over rival Las Cruces. With the win, Centennial earned the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye in the 6A playoffs. The hawks broke open a close game with two TD in less than a minute in the third quarter. QB [player_tooltip player_id='613746' first='Zaiden' last='Davis'], a serious contender for the 2024 New Mexico Heisman Award, directed a 77-yard drive to start the third quarter. Moments later, the Hawks defense intercepted a pass and Davis raced 65 yards for a TD on the next play to give Centennial a 35-17 lead.         Los Alamos won District 5A-1 with a 43-22 victory over Miyamura in a winner-take-all district championship game. Los Alamos QB [player_tooltip player_id='1119597' first='Kyle' last='Evenhus'] completed 15-of-20 passes for 230 yards and 2 TD, while RB [player_tooltip player_id='1604744' first='Jordan' last='Herrera'] rushed for 122 yards and 3 TD on a workhorse 25 carries and WR Gavin Mitchell caught 6 passes for 130 yards and 2 TD. Miyamura outgained Los Alamos but 3 interceptions and 2 forced fumbles by the Hilltoppers defense kept the Patriots from coming back after falling into an early 14-0 hole.   Valencia (7-3, 4-2) wrapped up a successful second season under head coach LeDarrius Cage with a 42-13 victory over Albuquerque Academy that ultimately knocked the Chargers out of the 4A playoffs. Valencia is the No. 8 seed in the 4A playoffs and hosts Moriarty in a 1st round game next weekend. Junior RB [player_tooltip player_id='1599923' first='Michael' last='Storms III'] continued his meteoric rise by rushing for 222 yards and 2 TD on a workhorse 32 carries, including the game's first score late in the 1st quarter. QB [player_tooltip player_id='1595752' first='Aidan' last='Harrington'] threw for 186 yards and rushed for 105 and 2 TD. Valencia outrushed Albuquerque Academy, 330-81.            St. Michael's (10-0) squared off with rival Robertson in a battle of unbeatens Friday night in Las Vegas and dominated the Cardinals, 34-21, to secure the No. 1 seed for the 3A playoffs. The Horsemen built a 27-7 halftime lead and held off the Cardinals in the second. [player_tooltip player_id='1119160' first='Soren' last='Annon'] and [player_tooltip player_id='853063' first='Isaiah' last='Dominguez'] scored rushing TDs in the 1st quarter to give St. Michael's a 14-7 lead. They scored 13 unanswered points in the 2nd quarter with a pair of TDs. Robertson closed the gap to 27-14 in the 2nd quarter but St. Michael's restored its 3-score lead (34-14) with a rushing TD late in the 3rd quarter.                Santa Rosa (7-3) won the District 2A-2 title by dealing Legacy Academy (9-1) its first loss of the season. The Lions closed the regular season with five straight victories and earned the No. 2 seed behind Texico in the 2A playoffs. Legacy Academy QB [player_tooltip player_id='1600087' first='Lorenzo' last='Sedillo-Urban'] threw for 273 yards and 2 TD on 24-of-38 passing and rushed for 90 yards on 12 carries, but it wasn't enough for the Silverbacks.         Players of the Week: [player_tooltip player_id='613746' first='Zaiden' last='Davis'], Centennial (6A); [player_tooltip player_id='615425' first='Amiri' last='Mumba'], Highland (5A);  [player_tooltip player_id='1599923' first='Michael' last='Storms III'], Valencia (4A); [player_tooltip player_id='613184' first='Isaiah' last='Ocampo'], Socorro (3A); [player_tooltip player_id='1595671' first='Landon' last='Noble'], Newcomb (2A).   Best Team Offensive Performance: Valencia. The Jaguars totaled 513 offensive yards, 330 on the ground, in a victory over Albuquerque Academy, whose defense had played reasonably well the past three weeks..     Best Team Defensive Performance: Texico. The Wolverines are big on the defensive line and Friday they exploited that size to hold Jal to minus-12 rushing yards on 13 carries.   Best Games: McCurdy 42, Hozho Academy 40; Taos 21, Bernalillo 14; Deming 15, Gadsden 7; Socorro 42, NMMI 35; Santa Rosa 27, Legacy Academy 20.       Playoff Brackets Set: The NMAA revealed the 2024 playoff brackets early Sunday morning. Here are the 1st round matchups for Nov. 8-9:   Class 6A: Hobbs (9) at Eldorado (8); West Mesa (12) at Las Cruces (5); Piedra Vista (11) at Los Lunas (6); Sandia (10) at Rio Rancho (7).   Class 5A: Highland (9) at Miyamura (8); Valley (12) at Los Alamos (5); Belen (11) at Mayfield (6); Goddard (10) at Lovington.   Class 4A: Moriarty (9) at Valencia (8); Chaparral (12) at Portales (5); Manzano (11) at Espanola Valley (6); Silver (10) at Grants (7).   Class 3A: Thoreau (9) at Hope Christian (8); Hot Springs (12) at NMMI (5); Ruidoso (11) at West Las Vegas (6); Pojoaque Valley (10) at Hatch Valley (7).   Class 2A: McCurdy (9) at Navajo Prep (8); Laguna-Acoma (12) at Eunice (5); Cuba (11) at Loving (6); Jal (10) at Raton (7).   Class 6A Roundup: La Cueva cemented its status as the No. 1 seeded team for the 6A playoffs by walloping Albuquerque High, 50-0, Thur. night. Bears QB [player_tooltip player_id='611098' first='Cameron' last='Dyer'] accounted for 3 TD and RB Cheeto Lumbrera scored 3 TD in the mercy-rule win. . .Cleveland won the City of Vision rivalry battle over crosstown rival Rio Rancho, 43-12, and secured a top three playoff seed as QB Jordan Hatch threw for 187 yards and the RB duo of [player_tooltip player_id='1595801' first='Isaiah' last='Yannis'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1600936' first='Samuel' last='Bustillos'] combined for 248 yards and 4 TD. The Cleveland defense forced several turnovers by the Rio Rancho offense. .  .Volcano Vista sealed the No. 4 seed and a first-round bye with a 49-0 victory over Cibola. After opening the season with a loss to La Cueva, the Hawks won 8 of their final 9 games. LB Thomas-James Pettus had 8 tackles, 3.0 TFL and 2.0 QB hurries to lead the Volcano Vista defense. .  .Hobbs (6-4) secured their spot in the 6A playoffs as the No. 9 seed with a weather-delayed 28-19 victory over Carlsbad. Eagles QB [player_tooltip player_id='1119255' first='Brock' last='Beaty'] completed 10-of-17 passes for 192 yards and 80 yards rushing. WR [player_tooltip player_id='1599800' first='Justice' last='French'] had 5 receptions for 164 yards. LB [player_tooltip player_id='1257310' first='Sammy' last='Baeza'] made 14 tackles with 4.0 TFL. Cavemen QB [player_tooltip player_id='1119650' first='Kason' last='Perez'] finished the regular season with 2,173 passing yards and 27 TD. . .Ranked No. 12 by MaxPreps, Piedra Vista (3-7) was squarely on the bubble heading into their Week 11 crosstown rivalry clash with Farmington. The Panthers, though, defeated the Scorpions, 29-19, as the defense forced five turnovers from the Farmington offense. Workhorse RB [player_tooltip player_id='1566538' first='Brig' last='Keiser'] rushed 21 times for 100 yards and 1 TD for Piedra Visa, which built a 23-0 halftime lead and held off the Scorpions in the second half. . .West Mesa blanked Santa Fe, 37-0, Thur. night in a must-win game for the Mustangs to keep their playoff hopes alive. Logan Jacabson and Jamari Woods combined 250+ rushing yards and 3 TD for West Mesa. Sunday, the Mustangs were given the No. 12 seed for the 6A playoffs. . .Los Lunas unleashed an impressive running game in a 44-0 victory over Sandia. The Tigers totaled 401 yards on the ground on 42 carries with [player_tooltip player_id='1137088' first='Kaiden' last='Reese'] (134 yards) and [player_tooltip player_id='1604956' first='Jagger' last='Casillas'] (132 yards) leading the way. [player_tooltip player_id='1119303' first='Jordan' last='Howard'] added 101 rushing yards. . .Alamogordo closed out its season with an impressive ground attack in a 62-22 victory over Clovis. The Tigers gained 542 rushing yards on 38 carries and had THREE ball carriers with 100+ rushing yards, led by [player_tooltip player_id='1259080' first='Dylan' last='Hergenreder'] with a season-high 173 yards and 3 TD on just 8 carries. QB [player_tooltip player_id='1600835' first='Nathanael' last='Best'] had 137 yards and 1 TD on 9 carries while completed all six of his passes. Clovis, which won a district championship last year, is left to pick up the pieces from a disappointing 0-10 season. . .Eldorado (7-3, 5-2) is back in the 6A playoffs after a two-year absence after forcing six turnovers (4 interceptions) in a 48-14 victory over Atrisco Heritage                                                  Class 5A Roundup: Lovington amassed 353 total offensive yards on just 24 plays as the Wildcats overwhelmed Santa Teresa, 44-9, to stake a claim for a top four seed. QB Mathew Prudencio was 7-of-8 passing for 199 yards and 3 TD. The Wildcats defense registered 9.5 TFL, 4 sacks and 3 QB hurries. Lovington led, 37-3, at halftime and cruised home from there. . .Deming (8-2) earned the No. 3 seed in Class 5A behind Roswell and Artesia with a hard-fought 15-7 home victory over Gadsden. Deming scored all their points in the 1st half and held off Gadsden in the second. Panthers QB [player_tooltip player_id='1119637' first='Adrian' last='Munoz'] completed 17-of-24 passes for 200 yards and 1 TD. . .Roswell blanked crosstown rival Goddard, 27-0, at the Wool Bowl to protect the No. 1 seed the Coyotes received from the NMAA. Roswell led, 7-0, at halftime on a rushing TD by Jacob Palomino before erupting for three TD in the second half, two on long scoring drives in the third quarter. Palomino added his second rushing TD. . .Defending 5A champion Artesia (7-3, 6-1) cemented the No. 2 seed in the 5A playoffs with a 42-28 victory over Mayfield Saturday afternoon at Field of Dreams. The Bulldogs jumped out to an early 14-0 lead before Mayfield fought back to tie the score at 28-28 with about 10 minutes remaining in the 4th quarter on a 39-yard run by [player_tooltip player_id='1266489' first='Anthony' last='Nevarez']. Artesia scored the final two TD of the game on QB [player_tooltip player_id='1432984' first='Izac' last='Cazares']'s tackle-breaking 14-yard run and his 48-yard game-clinching score with less than a minute remaining. . .Highland's stud RB [player_tooltip player_id='615425' first='Amiri' last='Mumba'] rushed for 234 yards on 25 carries and 2 TD to lift Highland to a 31-14 victory over Del Norte. The win earned Highland the No. 9 seed and a trip to Miyamura in the first round of the 5A playoffs. . .Valley secured their spot in the 5A playoffs with a 48-18 victory over winless Rio Grande. Vikings OL/DL [player_tooltip player_id='837220' first='Juan' last='Vigil'], one of the biggest players on the field, scored 3 TD, two on defense (interception + fumble return), while QB [player_tooltip player_id='1595733' first='Julian' last='Butkivich'] completed 16-of-27 passes for 277 yards and 1 TD and senior RB Zach Toledo had 102 yards rushing with 1 TD. Valley used two other QBs and finished with 349 passing yards.       Class 4A Roundup: No. 1 seed Bloomfield (9-0) put the finishing touches on their second straight perfect regular season with a 41-6 victory over Grants. . .St. Pius X (8-2, 6-0) secured a top four seed by concluding the regular season with a 16-7 victory over Manzano Thur. night. Sartans QB [player_tooltip player_id='1154948' first='Isaiah' last='Carpenter'] threw for 167 yards and 1 TD while sophomore RB [player_tooltip player_id='1154954' first='Hershul' last='Olloway'] rushed for 121 yards on 17 carries in the hard-fought contest. St. Pius X outgained Manzano, 189-77, on the ground and that proved to be the difference in the game. [player_tooltip player_id='1267030' first='Kolbe' last='Padilla'] and [player_tooltip player_id='615695' first='Michael' last='Deller'] each made 10 tackles for St. Pius X, which totaled 10.0 TFL, 4.0 sacks and 9 QB hurries. Ahead 14-7, St. Pius X blocked a punt through the back of the end zone to give them a two-score edge. . . Taos earned a top 4 seed in the 4A playoffs by beating Bernalillo, 21-14, as QB [player_tooltip player_id='853710' first='Evan' last='Salazar'] threw a 39-yard TD pass to Jaiya Valdez with about 8 mins left for the game-winning score. . .Espanola Valley (7-3) reached the 4A playoffs for the third consecutive year under head coach Tylon Wilder as they beat winless Aztec, 31-7, in the regular season finale. Aztec led early, 7-0, on a fumble return for a TD but the Sundevils dominated the rest of the game, outscoring the Tigers, 24-0, in the final three quarters. [player_tooltip player_id='1599942' first='Leonard' last='Martinez'], [player_tooltip player_id='1248665' first='Cru' last='Wilder'] and Anthony Maestas each rushed for a touchdown for the Sundevils. . .Freshman RB [player_tooltip player_id='1613398' first='Slade' last='Segovia'] rushed for 207 yards, QB [player_tooltip player_id='1594674' first='Tommy' last='Lopez'] added 152 yards and the duo combined for 4 TD as Portales beat Chaparral, 44-19, at Greyhound Stadium. Those two teams meet again at the same place in the 1st round of the 4A playoffs next weekend. . .Moriarty secured a spot in the 4A playoffs with a 38-23 victory over Kirtland Central, overcoming a combined 226 rushing yards and 2 TD by the Broncos duo of [player_tooltip player_id='604669' first='Bryle' last='Matthews'] and Payton Mike.                                                                                            Class 3A Roundup: Socorro earned a top four seed in the 3A playoffs after edging NMMI, 42-35, in Roswell. The Colts ended up as the No. 5 seed, so Friday's game was essentially winner-take-all for a first-round bye. Warriors QB [player_tooltip player_id='613184' first='Isaiah' last='Ocampo'] completed 15-of-27 passes for 192 yards and rushed 21 times for 202 yards to spark the Socorro offense. WR [player_tooltip player_id='1137096' first='Jay' last='Lee'] has 10 receptions for 143 yards and 3 TD. NMMI RB [player_tooltip player_id='1119319' first='Cohen' last='Tomasits'] rushed for 181 yards on just 9 carries. . .West Las Vegas outscored Pojoaque Valley, 20-0, in the second half as they sought to enhance their seeding for the 3A playoffs with a 41-12 home victory. QB [player_tooltip player_id='615555' first='CJ' last='Perea'] connected with WR [player_tooltip player_id='853064' first='Devaughn' last='Kensey'] for a 65-yard TD pass in the 2nd quarter. Later in the quarter, Kensey returned a kick 65 yards for a TD. WLV's second half surge began with [player_tooltip player_id='615662' first='Ethan' last='Tafoya']'s 15-yard TD run and concluded with Perea's 20-yard rushing TD. . .Tohatchi finished the regular season with 4 consecutive wins, including a 46-6 victory over Zuni in Week 11. Tohatchi finished 7-3, scoring 46+ points in each of those four wins. The Cougars outscored their final 4 opponents, 195-12. . .Shiprock ended the season with a promising 2-game winning streak that should give the Chieftains some momentum heading into the off-season. In Week 11 , Shiprock beat Gallup, 40-18. . .Ruidoso locked in a 3A playoff berth with a 21-17 victory over Hot Springs. Junior RB [player_tooltip player_id='1267035' first='Tru' last='Camejo'] rushed for 109 yards on 14 carries. Sunday, Ruidoso was awarded the No. 11 seed and will travel to West Las Vegas in the 1st round. . .RB [player_tooltip player_id='1119512' first='Orrin' last='Russell'] rushed for 150 yards and 3 TD on 17 carries as Hatch Valley mercy-ruled Cobre, 50-0, The Bears earned the No. 7 seed for the 3A playoffs. . .Thoreau clinched the District 3A-1 title and a playoff berth with a 22-14 victory over Crownpoint. [player_tooltip player_id='1137876' first='Jordan' last='Calladitto'] had a 30-yard Pick-6 for the first points of the game.            Class 2A Roundup: Unbeaten Texico (9-0) sealed the No. 1 seed for the Class 2A playoffs with a 52-0 victory over Jal, who must now make the long trip to Raton in the 1st round of the playoffs. Texico's defense dominated the game, holding Jal to 26 total yards in 28 plays, including minus-12 rushing yards on 13 attempts. . .Eunice must be wondering what they have to do to get a top four seed. The Cardinals were ranked in the top 3 of Class 2A by MaxPreps for most of the season, and were No. 2 behind Texico when Week 11 started. The Cardinals trounced Loving, 65-27, behind 253 passing yards and 4 TD passes by QB [player_tooltip player_id='854273' first='Elijah' last='Melancon'] and 170 rushing yards and 3 TD by [player_tooltip player_id='615650' first='Eljan' last='Woods']. Yet, Eunice was only seeded No. 5 when the 2A brackets were released this morning. . .Raton earned the No. 7 seed in the 2A playoffs after beating Estancia, 41-18. Raton scored a pair of TDSs in the first 5 minutes of the 3rd quarter to pull away. . .Newcomb RB [player_tooltip player_id='1595671' first='Landon' last='Noble'] capped a 1,400+ yard rushing season with 222 yards on a workhorse 39 carries but the Skyhawks lost to Navajo Prep, 44-24, and failed to make the 2A playoffs. Navajo Prep finished in a 3-way tie for 1st place with Cuba and McCurdy but was awarded the higher seed (#8). . .McCurdy stopped Hozho Academy's 2-point conversion attempt in the final minute to hold on for a wild 42-40 victory in Gallup. McCurdy is the No. 9 seed and will travel to district rival Navajo Prep in the 1st round of the 2A playoffs. . .Cuba blanked Laguna-Acoma, 21-0, on Saturday. Both teams made the 2A playoffs as the No. 11 (Cuba ) and No. 12 (Laguna-Acoma) seeds. . .Tucumcari closed out its season with a 41-0 victory over winless Capitan.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/PrepRedzoneNM/status/1852568861616316905 </div></figure>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/PrepRedzoneNM/status/1852857328925569141 </div></figure>     <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/11/Screenshot-2024-11-03-at-20-21-23-68-Prep-Redzone-New-Mexico-@PrepRedzoneNM-_-X.png?w=531" alt="" class="wp-image-1549537" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: Twitter</figcaption></figure>

Week 11 of the 2024 New Mexico High School football season is complete. Here is our 11^th edition of the Weekly Whiparound, our deep dive into everything that happened on the field: